Em & Tola's Travel Blog

Our last stop in Cambodia was the capital of Phnom Phen. The first day we met up with my old friend Un Bunneng who lives in PP, but is originally from Kratie. He showed us the capital from his bike and it turned out to be a quite charming little city. It has the stress of the normal southeast Asian city, with all the honking, motorbikes and chaotic traffic, but it feels smaller and more familiar than others. Maybe it is what has been leftover from the French who left a lot of buildings, and with the buildings, also some of their French charm.

The second day we were thrown into Cambodia's dark and disturbing recent history when we went to the Killing Fields of Choeung Ek. In this small area of about 500 square meters about 17 thousand people were brutally assassinated between 1975 and 1979. It was impossible not to get affected by the area, and standing next to the 100 meter high memorial pagoda filled with human skulls was one of the most surreal and disturbing experiences I have had. Another disturbing thing is that the killing fields are now owned by a private Japanese company that are using the area to make a profit. I have a feeling that the money does not go to the Cambodian people. What also became unsettling is that just around the corner from Choeung Ek there is a shooting range. At this range you can apparently shoot cows with AK-47's or fire rocket launchers at them in an open field.

After the killing fields, we also headed over to the Toul Sleng Museum which is a old elementary/high school that between 1975 - 1979 was turned into a torture prison. This was a place where people where tortured for a few months before they were sent to the killing fields to be assassinated.


During the rest of our stay in PP, we spent exploring the city by foot. We passed Independence Monument, the Royal Pagoda, the beautiful Mekong Riverside, the temple Wat Phnom and many other beautiful places.

Phnom Phen ended up being a place very difficult to grasp, but I am very happy we came.